UFC light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones (13-1) is still riding high on his title win over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua last month in the headliner for UFC 128.
The youngest ever UFC champion, he’s just 23, is taking some time to relax after back-to-back training camps and despite winning a UFC title, feels that things are pretty much the same.
Jones earned a title shot after submitting Ryan Bader at UFC 126 after former Team Jackson teammate Rashad Evans pulled out of his bout with Rua due to injury. “Bones” dominated “Shogun” at the March 19 event, earning a third round TKO win to acquire UFC gold.
“It hasn’t really sunk in. In a lot of ways I felt as if I was a champion just because of the way I carry myself as a person and the way I look at life. And even before I got the belt I felt like I was an elite fighter in the world. Anyone ranked in the top ten in the world is automatically considered a champion in my opinion and now I feel as if I’m a champion of champions, and life is pretty much the same.”
“My outlook is to never do anything that will disappoint kids across the country, never getting caught in a Tiger Woods scandal or anything crazy like that, and just staying where I’m at as an athlete, continuing to win fights decisively. I want to continue to do the things that got me to where I am – I want to continue being a champion in the way I treat people and continue to be a champion with decisive wins, and that’s important to me. (teammate and UFC welterweight champion) Georges (St-Pierre) always says he’s not fighting as a champion; he’s fighting for his legacy. And I’m very young and I guess I don’t have the right to mention a legacy at this point, but in a way I am fighting for my legacy already, and me being aware of that keeps me on the prowl.”
HT: UFC.com